Bethesda High Schools Make U.S. News List

Two Bethesda high schools achieved gold medal status in the latest rankings from U.S. News and World Report, with Walt Whitman ranked No. 59 on a list of best high schools in the country.

Bethesda-Chevy Chase High School was ranked No. 128. The top 500 high schools get gold medal status.

MCPS had six schools in the top 500, led by Winston Churchill in Potomac (No. 52). Poolesville (No. 99), Thomas S. Wootton in Rockville (No. 105), Richard Montgomery in Rockville (No. 106) and Montgomery Blair in Silver Spring (No. 247) were also on the list, as well as Wheaton (No. 1,032).

MCPS had the six top schools in Maryland and seven of the top 10.

“The schools on the U.S. News Best High Schools list should be proud of the work they have done to serve their students and prepare them for college and the workplace,” MCPS superintendent Joshua Starr said in a statement. “I am pleased with the work that all of our high schools are doing, and we must continue to focus on meeting the needs of all students so we can prepare them for the future they want.”

Schools were judged on student to teacher ratio, college readiness as indicated by participation in Advanced Placement courses and proficiency in Algebra and English.